Feds Seek Prison For Michigan Militia Leader

UNSPECIFIED - UNDATED: In this handout image provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, David Brian Stone Sr., of Clayton, poses for a mug shot. It was announced on March 29, 2010 that nine members of a militia group based in Michigan have been accused of sedition and weapons charges in a plot to murder law enforcement officers. David Stone (Courtesy: U.S. Marshals Service)

DETROIT (WWJ/AP) – Prosecutors are urging a judge to send the leader of a southern Michigan militia to prison for possessing a machine gun and other illegal weapons.

Prosecutors said Hutaree members were anti-government rebels who combined training and strategy sessions to prepare for a violent strike against federal law enforcement. Defense lawyers said the Hutaree were simply “weekend warriors” who engaged in stupid, hateful speech, but nothing criminal. They said offensive talk was wrongly turned into a high-profile criminal case.

But in a trial that began in early February, federal District Judge Victoria Roberts said she did not find that the government’s evidence sufficiently proved that the Hutaree militia had planned a conspiracy against the government.

In a court filing Wednesday, prosecutors asked for a 41-month prison term. Stone likely would get credit for two years spent in jail before trial. He hopes the judge considers the jail time as enough punishment.

Prosecutors say Stone was a serious threat and still isn’t remorseful. Separately, the government wants a 33-month prison sentence for Stone’s son, Joshua. He also served two years in jail before trial.